Love Found
by ichocolate21
Summary: (Sequel to Love Lost) Rachel Roth is your average teenage girl with a strong sense of justice. But what will happen when people begin to question her identity? Is there more to Rachel then meets the eye? The Titans certainly think so but the question is will Rachel believe them? BBXRae StarfireXRobin Rated M for later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

"Did you catch the news yesterday?"

Abby flipped through the pages of her magazine and waited for Cindy to answer. Cindy was slurping her slushy. She made it her mission to slurp every last drop without stopping to see if she could get a brain freeze. After sucking the thing dry and smacking her lips she finally turned to Abby.

"No, I was too busy during Ms. McGuire research paper."

"Seriously Cindy, I told you not to wait till the last-minute." Abby closed her magazine and gave Cindy a look of disgust. "Ms. McGuire said you couldn't wait till the last day and what do you?" Abby crosses her arms and pouts out her lips mimicking the same thing Cindy did the day Ms. McGuire assigned the homework. "Challenge accepted." She uncrossed her arm and picked up the magazine again. "I don't get you. What were you trying to prove by doing that?"

Cindy smirked and crumbled her slushy cup. "That I could I finish it last-minute."

Abby rolled her eyes. "Yeah, well you can't do that in college, You're going to have- Don't even think about it!" she quickly shouted as Cindy was just about to cross her arms again.

"Ugh, you worry too much. Where's the fun on living on the safe side? You have to take risks sometimes."

"Not unnecessary risks that affect your GPA!"

"Hey, it's not my fault our teacher assigned a research paper right at the start of the school year. I mean come on it's our senior year…"

"That's exactly why you shouldn't take unnecessary risks! Rae, please tell her!" Abby pleaded to a girl in a purple hoodie who was causally sitting at her desk and reading an old dusty book.

"I have nothing to do with this." Rachel said and flipped another page. Her voice was monotone and her expression showed a look of boredom and pure disinterest.

"More like you're tired of wasting your breath."

"What are you reading this time Rachel? Another book about sorcery and witchcraft?" Cindy asked twiddling her fingers.

"Actually no, it's a book I got from that old book store down the street for the research paper. I figured I should finish reading it since I brought it." Rachel said with a shrug, not even bothering to spare her friends a glance.

"I don't understand you Rae." Abby said shaking her head. "You know there is something called a library right? Where you can borrow books?"

"Not to mention, you picked such boring topics to choose from. I mean the Salem Witch Trials? That is so boring."

"And by boring do you mean, actually having a lot of research materials and academic resources other than Wikipedia?"

"Like that matters. If I was a teacher I would let my student research any topic they wanted like-"

"The Teen Titans?" Abby added with a grin.

"Hell yeah! I freaking love them."

"We know." Abby and Rachael said simultaneously.

"You brought every t-shirt, collector item, and video game." Rachel set down her book as she counted all the items on her fingers. "I'm surprised you don't have their used tissues yet.

"I'm still working on that. The bid is really high on Beast Boy's"

"I still don't get why you guys like them so much." Rachel grabbed her book and flipped through the pages. "Out of all the superhero teams to protect my life, the Titans are the last team I would trust."

Abby gasped and placed her hands over her heart. "How could you say that?"

"Yeah what's wrong with the Titans?"

"Well for one thing, they're not teens anymore. They're like what in their twenties? It silly to call a team of young adults, teens."

"But Teen Titans sounds cooler than just plain Titans…" Cindy argued

"I think they referred themselves as Titans anyway." Abby pointed out.

"Second of all, they keep losing members, didn't something big happen like a year ago with that cloaked chick?"

"Raven? Yeah, I think she died."

"No she didn't!" Cindy screamed in defense. "Raven is not dead! She just…disappeared."

"And nobody can find her or tell us about her whereabouts? Yeah, either she's dead or in a coma, which will probably led to death if she's in the hands of the enemy."

"Okay…Well that's it-"

"I wasn't finish. The third problem is the team is all over the place. Nobody is leading anything. That green guy keeps going on separate missions with that robot while the alien and um…Robin watches things here. There's not enough protection."

"For someone who doesn't like the Titans, you sure do follow-up on them." Abby noticed.

Rachel scoffed. "I like to know about the people who are supposedly protecting my life. Plus unlike Cindy, I watch the news."

"Well the Titans are all Jump City got, so be thankful."

"I would rather have the Justice League. At least they got their shit together, not to mention plenty of members to spare."

"The Justice League is too busy solving global problems than to deal with little Ol' Jump City." Cindy said with an accent.

"Oh, that's what I wanted to talk about!" Abby clapped her hands together and reached inside her book bag. "You keep talking about the lack of members but the Titans are supposedly having a press conference to discuss that issue" She pulled out a newspaper and flipped it open to an article about the Titans. "They're recruiting new members and announcing them then."

"Sweet! Do you think it'll be Kid Flash?" Cindy asked excitedly.

Abby groaned. "I sure hope not. He's so overrated and he never takes his job seriously."

"Hm… what about Aqualad?"

"Titans East." Rachel and Abby said flatly.

"Bumbl-"

"Titans East!" Rachel and Abby once again shouted simultaneously.

Cindy tapped her forehead. "Oh I know! Red Star!" Cindy frowned when she saw Abby open her mouth again. "Don't tell me…Titans East?"

"No." Cindy smiled.

"Titans North" Abby said with a mischievous grin.

"Damn…Well now I have to go! I can't wait to see who'll be picked!" Cindy began to bounce in her seat.

"Do you want to go Rachel?" Abby turned to Rachel with a look of hope. "It's this Wednesday at 3pm."

"Maybe you can show off your witch craft skills and get requited." Cindy joked and walked to the chalkboard. "They'll call you, the Mystic Rae!" She laughed and wrote Mystic Rae on the board.

"Jeez, as awesome as that sounds" Rachel looked up at the clock and got up. "I have work this week."

Abby and Cindy groaned.

"Rae, that was your excuse last week."

"It was?"

"Yeah, you used it when we asked if you want to go shopping."

"Oh…Well I also have homewo-"

"Ah! That's your second most used excuse." Abby reached in her bag and pulled out a small notepad label "Rachel Excuses."

"That and I have chores." Abby closed the book and waved it at Rachel.

"You're running out of excuses Rae."

"You recorded all my excuses?" Rachel eyes widen slightly in bewilderment.

Abby nodded and Rachel attempted to swipe for the book but Abby dodged and threw it to Cindy.

"Oh No you don't!" Cindy rose to her feet and held the book over her head while Rachel tried to grab at it. Rachel let out a sigh of defeat and walked back to her desk.

"Why you never want to hang out with us, Rae?"

"It's not that I don't want too, it's just…" Rachel bite her lip and sighed. "I'll ask my brothers."

Abby smiled satisfied. "Okay."

Cindy sucked her teeth. "They better say yes."

"Yeah, I really hope they do." Rachel voice was thick with sarcasm.

Cindy threw her crumble slushy cup at her but Rachel dodge and the cup sailed right into the garbage can.

"Score!"

Rachel laughed and waved. "I'll see you guys tomorrow."

"Bye Rae!" Abby waved and went back to her magazine while Cindy took out her DS and began to play it.

Rachel let out a breath of relief as she began her long walk home. She adjusted the straps on her bag and started to read the book and walk. It helped her forget about the crime ridden neighborhood she was walking in to. She didn't have to watch as the crystal clean concrete street became hidden with trash or watch the clean brick walls become a massive spectacle of vivid color scribbles,offensive words, and gang signs. She made sure she wasn't wearing any gang colors and she was able to ignore the homeless except when the strong scent of urine reached her nose.

There were no heroes here.

Nothing but crime, villains, and filth riddle this neighborhood. Where were the Titans when her neighbor's daughter got rape on her own front yard? Where were the Titans when the corner store was getting robbed during that black out? Where were the titans when a group of thugs robbed a man while waiting for the bus? Since as long as she could remember, the Titans haven't been anywhere. Not even the police tried to stop the crime. More like they ignored it. In this neighborhood, people adopted the idea of looking out for yourself.

You have to be your own hero.

She remembered when her brothers first told her that when they moved into this neighborhood and ever since then she done just that. On the outside, she was just the quiet Rachel Roth. But to others, she was the girl who chased away Crystal's rapist with only a BB gun. She was the girl who saw what was going on while walking past Mr. Green corner store and dared to "snitch" and call the police. She did the same thing with Bob who was waiting for the bus to work. She realized that even the 9 out 10 chance that the police will show up was enough to send the crooks running. Someone just had to make the call.

Her brothers told her it didn't always used to be this way. But ever since a year ago the Titans been so out of touch with everything, it takes the heaviest risk factor just for them to come out and help. Next month will make two years and the Titans still don't have it all together. It's supposed to because of that Raven girl but Rachel didn't care. She hated the Titans because they didn't care. They didn't care that she was now public enemy number one or that she risk her life everyday just by crossing the border to her neighborhood. Granted she should have thought of the consequences to her actions beforehand but that's was just her nature. When She sees someone in need, she does everything in her power to help. It's how she made tons of enemies but it's also how she made two friends.

Rachel knew she should be thanking God for her brothers. If it wasn't for them she would have been shot, raped, or murder by now. She looked from her book for a second surprised to see that she was already home.

It was weird for her. She would usually be tormented by Gary, the leader of the Gladiators.

She decided to count her blessing and not dwell on it. She opened the door to her house and stepped in. An intoxicating scent greeted her.

She let out a groan and set down her bag. She headed to the living room where she knew she would find the source of the smell. Sure enough there was her brother, Jared, slouched on the couch. There were multiple bottles of beer all over the floor. They were all empty except for one which was in Jared hand. He was staring aimlessly at the TV which was off. It was like he was in a trance. Rachel took a deep breath before clearing her throat and speaking. "Jared, you know you shouldn't be drinking like this. It's not healthy."

Wasted words.

"Fuck off…" He mumbled before bringing the bottle back to his lips.

Repeated cycle.

This was the part where Rachel could choose to pry the bottle from his hands which would take a lot of effort considering how built her brother was or go find Jacob. She rubbed her forehead and decided to go for the second option. Jared had a dynamite temper that can go off in a second. She could usually deal with his yelling but right now she didn't feel up to her witty snap-backs. At least Jacob was able to get him to stop after a few words while Rachel attempts usually takes hours. Rachel turned on her heel and began to climb upstairs to where she knew Jacob would be. He was always in his study either working or sleeping. Rachel never knew what he working on, his office was overrun with papers and she never had the time to figure all of them out. Except for that, Jacob was pretty lazy when it came to everything else. He doesn't cook or clean. Hell, it takes an effort to make him put some clothes on.

Rachel knocked on the door to his study. There was no answer. She pressed her ear against the door and could make out the muffled sound of snoring.

It's better not to disturbed him. Jacob more grumpy than Jared when it comes to being woken up, especially when it's because of Jared's drinking. It would turn this small everyday thing into a huge argument.

Time for Plan C.

Rachel ran down the stair and went out the back door to the yard where she knew she would find her other brother, Jesse.

He was the one that Rachel talked to about everything. He seemed like the only normal person in her loving dysfunctional family. She liked to think of Jesse as a mother. She could never tell him that. It was usually the two of them taking care of the house. He even makes her breakfast for school sometimes and he's always making sure she has money for school. He was the most reliable and responsible of her brothers so he takes care of the important business that Rachel is too young to do. But truthfully, Jesse was jealous of his brother ability to do absolutely nothing. Rachel would be too. But he never complained about it to Jacob or Jared. He just accepted his duty from the start. He would only voice his complaints to Rachel which she happily listened to.

She closed the patio door behind her and smiled when she spotted Jesse in his usual spot,standing on the patio deck, overlooking the pool, and smoking a cigarette.

She joined him and leaned against the railing mimicking him. She was thankful for her house. While everybody else lived in run down houses or busted up apartments, Rachel house was actually alright. They even had their own pool which she and Jesse clean regularly. Rachel never invited her friends over though. She didn't want them to know the world she lived in.

Jesse let out a puff of smoke. "Hey Rae, how are you feeling?"

Rachel smiled and stretched. "Pretty okay, I guess. How are you feeling?" She adjusted to their normal routine of small talk.

Jesse shrugged "Pretty okay…It's close isn't it?"

Rachel raised her eyebrow. "What is?"

Jesse turned his head towards her and lowered his eyes. "Your birthday."

"Oh Yeah." Rachel scratched her head and blushed "One month right?"

"October 23." Jesse said slowly trying to make sure she remembered "You'll be 18. I can hardly believe it."

"Neither can I. I remember when I turned sixteen."

Jesse shakes his head. "That's all you can remember."

She jabbed him in the arm. "Not the point."

But it was true. For some reason Rachel couldn't remember much about her life before she was 16. She couldn't even remember her parents. Jacob told her it was because she had a terrible accident that left her in a coma for a while and when she woke up she couldn't remember anything. She tried to ask more about it but Jacob said it was too hard to talk about. So she never pressed him. It didn't matter too much to her. Instead it made her cherish the memories she already has and to grip to those rare stories of her past that Jesse talks about. Some of them don't make sense. Like how he could always remember everything about her mom but he never ever talked about her father. It was strange but she decided not press. Her brother told her they would tell her when the time is right and she knew they didn't make a promise that they didn't attend to keep. She would just have to wait patiently.

Sometimes her memory would come back on its own in the form of dreams, but they never made any sense. It was just flashes of people, screams, and something green. She never told Jesse about the dreams. Maybe she will one day, when they begin to make more sense.

"You're daydreaming."

Rachel snapped back to reality at the sound of Jesse's voice. It was then that she remembered what she came to tell him.

"Oh, Jared's drunk again and Jacob-"

"Is sleeping." Jesse said with a sigh. "I get it. Thanks for telling me. You can go on upstairs." He crushed his cigarette underneath his foot. "I'll call you down when dinner is ready." Jesse walked to the door.

"Good Luck!"

Jesse nodded his head and disappeared inside.

Rachel chuckled before resting on the railing again. She closed her eyes and prayed that she would sleep peacefully tonight.

* * *

_Next chapter we will be visiting the Titans Tower to see what they been up to! Hope you guys enjoyed this first chapter. Please Review, Bye!_


	2. Chapter 2

On an island overlooking the bay of Jump City, there was a tower. In it lived one of the greatest superhero teams since the Justice League. But it was more than that. It was the home of a family. A family who loved and cared for each other. Sure, they had their ups and downs, but they wouldn't be family if they didn't get through it. They had the perfect set up.

The annoying little brother

The sarcastic bookworm little sister

The loving and energetic mother

The all-Business but equally loving Father

And the techno geek older brother.

That was how it should be...How it used to be.

But now as Cyborg looked around the place he called home. He could see nothing was the same. 3 out of 5 beloved family members had been lost. While the rest of them struggle to maintain who they were, it was easy to see they were also falling victim to change.

He missed her.

He craved her.

That was apparent. What started off as a mission became a dark obsession even bigger than Robin's obsession with Slade. But Robin was no long "the boy wonder" and Beast Boy was no longer a "Boy". They both agreed on that. Robin embraced the persona Starfire told him about when she traveled to the future and meet the man who Robin was today, Nightwing. Despite Starfire's pleas, He assured her nothing would change with his new identity. Beast Boy was another story. He embraced the change and ditched his boy mentality. Now, he was Changeling. Oh, how that name fit...and he hated it for that exact reason. He didn't want a Changeling. He wanted his grass stain, His BB, and most importantly, he wanted his brother back. But with the loss of his love came the loss of his youth. As the days became months and the months became years, he started to lose hope. But Changeling didn't. And when he realized everybody else was losing faith, he exploded. Cyborg truly didn't want to lose hope. But next month would be another reminder that something was missing from his life.

He couldn't deal with it.

Not again.

Two years have passed...He had to tell Beas-...Changeling...He couldn't do it anymore. No more searching hot-spots that all end up cold, no more staying up all night researching places where she could be. No more listening to him cry like he was finally broken and realizing the truth only for the stubborn idiot to get up the next morning to look some more. No more fear of saying her name in case he was around...No more...

She was gone.

And it was time for him to face it.

Cyborg nodded his head with this conclusion and walked to evidence room where he knew Changeling would be.

He was prepared to knock on the door but was surprise to see it wide open. He stepped into the dark and squinted at the figure hunched over a desk with a table light on. He scanned the room. Pictures of her, Missing Person flyers and various newspaper articles varying from UFO sighting to new meta-human findings was scattered all over the floor and posted to the wall. He peered over Changeling shoulder and noticed a pile of ancient scrolls from Azarath found stashed in her room.

"You wanna hear something funny?" Changeling deep voice laced with an indescribable emotion echoed through the dense room.

Cyborg frowned. Changeling never said anything funny lately.

"We found these scrolls last week. I sent them to Oracle that very day. I called her up a few minutes ago to see how the interpretation was going..." He tapped his finger against the desk in a steady rhythm. "And you know what she said?"

Cyborg held his breath in anticipation.

"I'm still working on it." Changeling voice was thick with sarcasm as he mimicked Barbara's voice. "I gave her a week...and she's still fucking working on it…" His back hunched over and his forehead leaned against his hands as he chuckled bitterly.

"You know Barbara's working as hard as she can."

"Not hard enough!" Changeling sprung around in his chair to face Cyborg.

"It's not easy for her." Cyborg tried to keep his voice steady and calm, but he could hear his voice rising with each passing second. "It's in a language that doesn't even have a name. It's not like she can Google it or find a dictionary to translate it, and you hounding her isn't making her job any easier."

"This is could be the piece of information we need to find her!" Changeling glared at Cyborg like he was the crazy one. "Do you not realize that!?"

"Do you not realize what a huge dick you're being right now!? She didn't have to help you. She has a lot on her plate as it with feeding Batman and the Justice League information. The least you could do is show some damn gratitude!"

"Oh, I'll show some gratitude...When she does her fucking job!" Changeling turned around again and gently picked up one of the scrolls. "She's out there…alone. She needs us and-"

"She? Who is she, Beast Boy?" Cyborg leaned his body towards Changeling and placed his hand on the desk, trapping him. "Say her name."

Changeling immediately tensed up. He was still as a rock and his breathing became steady. He closed his eyes as a vein twitched in his forehead.

"...Cyborg...Move…" Changeling whispered dangerously through clenched teeth.

"Say it..." Cyborg voice matched his.

"I mean it..."

"So do I..."

The air went still as the two men twitched in anger, both on the verge of their breaking points.

It was like a game of Russian roulette. Who would lose, depended on one trigger, and Cyborg pulled it first.

"Well, since you won't say it I will."

Cyborg leaned down, tilted his head, and positioned his mouth centimeters away from Changeling's ear.

"Raven. Is. Dead."

Changeling leaped from his chair with a snarl. He grabbed Cyborg by his neck and slammed him against the wall causing more papers to join the rest on the floor.

"YOU BASTARD..." He glared at him with bloodshot eyes. His dark green hair dangled in front of those furious eyes. Even it couldn't hide the hatred. His fangs exposed and if Cyborg wasn't made of metal, he was sure Changeling would've bitten his neck off by now.

"She's gone..."

"DON'T YOU FUCKING SAY THAT!" His voice laced with venom and Cyborg neck began to flicker and spark with the added pressure of Changeling's hand while his feet dangled from the ground.

"Beast Boy...Pl-"

"SHUT UP! THAT'S NOT MY NAME!" He wrapped his other hand around Cyborg neck and squeezed harder.

"I should kill you...I SHOULD FUCKING KILL YOU FOR SAYING THAT!"

"Go ahead, and do it." Cyborg said flatly with a nonchalant look. "But it won't bring her back...I'm sorry man...I'm truly am. But it's time to face the music."

Changeling eyes burned holes into Cyborg's, but he still lead him gently to the ground.

They stared at each other before Changeling scoffed and turned away. He went back to his desk and placed his body in the same position, Cyborg first saw him.

"Get out..."

Cyborg didn't move. He was debating about pushing him further. He didn't want another relapse, but he could tell his neck was damage. He forgotten how strong Changeling's human form was now.

"I won't tell you again."

With that Cyborg turned and left.

* * *

"Aqualad?"

"No."

"Hot Spot?"

"No."

"Mas y Menos?"

"Definitely Not."

Starfire sighed as she crossed another name from the list. Nightwing was pacing the floor in the common room while Starfire sat on the couch, her legs crossed, with a notepad in her hand.

"Dick..."

She refused to call him that other name, since he was no longer Robin, except in public. She watched Nightwing pace the room and sighed. How much things had changed in two years. Nightwing and Changeling both did the changing of names and Starfire still couldn't understand why. Cyborg refused to do it and while she was tempted to change hers, Cyborg reminded her that she didn't have a secret identity anyway since Starfire was the English pronunciation of her real name, Koriand'r. He had a point there plus, she liked the idea of being Nightwing and Starfire on the battlefield and being Dick and Kori in the bedroom.

This brought her to the second part of her thought.

She couldn't believe they were still together after all that. The words he spoke that day hurt more than when Blackfire betrayed her. It took her a couple of weeks to recover. She maintained her cheerful illusion on the outside but deep down, she was still hurting.

She left the Titans.

She couldn't bear the pain of seeing him every day. She promised Cyborg, who was deeply heartbroken at her request to leave, that she would return after she found herself.

It was just an excuse.

In reality, she was searching for someone to mend her broken heart and replace Robin. During that time, she went through many men. They varied in status: Celebrities, regular citizens, Tamaranian men and the Titans very own Speedy. They were all kind and sweet and they proved great temporary distractions but then she realized, that's all they were, **distractions**.

She was running from the truth.

She was letting the pain settle in instead of ridding herself of it completely. She broke many hearts along the way but they knew what they was getting into when they started dating her. She made sure to warn them beforehand, so they would be ready when the inevitable end happens. She went back to the tower a few months later and, to her surprise, he was still there…_waiting for her_.

She still loved him and she probably always will.

They started over again. Not straight to dating, but as friends. And despite the fact that Dick words remained true, she still wanted to try. Now, here they were, still together two years later. To say it wasn't tough would be a lie and, even now, she still has doubts. She wouldn't have pictured here relationship with Dick to be this rocky but it happened and, despite it all, she was still happy. There was a lot of things that she didn't think would happen.

She never thought she would lose her best friend. She did Blorthog every year just so that wouldn't happen, but she still lost her friend. She didn't realize soon enough that the events of her journey to the future was actually happening. With Robin becoming Nightwing and Beast Boy, while he wasn't fat and bald, changing into something Starfire could never imagine, it was easy to see the future was happening sooner instead of later.

She missed her so much.

The battle wasn't suppose to end like that. She was to come back home to the tower where they would do the girl talk and go to the mall of shopping, but that didn't happen. Raven was gone…and Starfire was beginning to lose hope that she would ever see her friend again. So many changes happened in the tower, and Starfire was afraid she too would succumb to the inevitable phase of growing up.

She refused to.

She felt she would lose everything if she did. That's why she still wore the same knee-high boots. She still spoke in broken English despite fully mastering it a year ago. She still pretended to be oblivious, dense, and gullible. If she didn't, she would surely lose the memories of the good times. She didn't want to get use to this lifestyle and the new personalities of her friends. She still had hope that things would return to normal.

Changeling would go back to the humorous, fun-loving, goof ball she remembered. He would scream at Cyborg for making a carnivore's dream breakfast. Then, He, Dick, and Cyborg would plop on the couch and play their video games while Starfire would watch in curiosity. A few minutes later, she would come in. She would warm a pot of tea and sit next to Starfire. She would roll her eyes at the boys while she waited and would attempt the small talk with Starfire. Than, when the humming pot was heard, and the steam would fill the air, she would pour herself a cup of the brown liquid before retiring to her room.

"Starfire…" Starfire opened her eyes to see Nightwing peering down at her with a look of concern. She looked around puzzled. Unbeknownst to her, while she was reminiscing, a lone tear had fallen from her eye.

"Oh, My apologies Dick. You needn't to worry. It was just the something in my eye." She reassured him as she wiped her eyes.

"It's okay Star…I miss her too." Nightwing sat down next to her and wrapped his arm around Starfire as she snuggled into his warmth.

"We can take a break if you want?"

Starfire shook her head. "No, we must find a new member by tomorrow. Changeling would do the killing of us if we do not."

Nightwing sighed.

"I guess you're right."

Things haven't been easy with Nightwing being second in command while Changeling was gone. There was no time to play, and everything was just business. Even when Nightwing was the leader of Titans he tried to give the team some time for fun. But, he understood Changeling feelings too. After all, he to had obsessions that put the team on edge, leaving "just having fun" and "being a teenager" on a temporary halt. Not that they could be teenagers anymore. Nightwing was a few months away from hitting twenty-one. He didn't know how to feel about becoming an "adult". Most young adults would feel joy at the idea of finally being legal. But to Nightwing, he was an adult since he became Robin. Sure, he was called the boy wonder, but Batman made sure there was no time for boyish games. Nightwing been an adult mentally for years so, becoming a legal adult didn't fill him with neither joy nor excitement. It would be the same thing for him.

Nothing new.

"Oh!" Starfire, who was still thinking, sudden exclaim broke Nightwing out of his thoughts. "What about our friend Red X? Perhaps I could convince him to join the side of goodness for the team sake?"

Nightwing stared at Starfire like she had three heads before narrowing his eyes and shaking his head.

"Star, Red X is nothing but a criminal. He's no good. We can't ask him."

"He was always good to me..."

Nightwing frowned deeper while Starfire gulped and hid her face behind her notepad. She forgot that Red X was the last guy she dated before she went back with Dick.

"I'm afraid we have run out of people. Who else can we ask?"

Nightwing held his chin in thought. He rose from the couch and went back to pacing around the room.

_Who could they ask?_

_Who would work?_

_Who could they trust?_

Nightwing scanned his brain for some people. Finally, he stopped pacing.

Of course!

Nightwing smiled as he walked to his room. He wasn't sure...But it was worth a shot.

"Dick, where are you going?" Starfire called out from her spot on the couch. She twisted her body to watch Dick leave.

"To make a quick call to an old friend."

* * *

Nightwing searched for a few minutes for his old phone book. Thank God he didn't throw it away and that he was organized. He never thought he would have to dial this number again so he was thinking about discarding it, but boy, was he glad he didn't.

He was nervous.

He didn't know what to expect. She might say no. He wouldn't blame her. So much time has passed and people change. She could be busy. But he had no other options. She was there for him since the beginning and he knew he could trust her. It wouldn't hurt to ask...

Nightwing let out a breath before taking a new one. He let his fingers dial the number and he pressed the phone to his ear. It rang and rang and Nightwing was beginning to lose hope. He didn't count on her having a new number. Just when he was about to hang up he heard a click.

"Hello?"

Nightwing smiled at the sound of her unchanged voice.

"Hello, Donna."

* * *

_Am I am the only one who prefers Beast Boy over Changeling? I kept typing BB instead. For the sake of story, i'm afraid he must remain Changeling. Same thing with Robin. Also, I was looking at the suggestions, and so far, I think I can include everyone ideas into the story. So keep reading everybody to see your suggestion! I hope everybody enjoying the sequel so far. Please Review! See you in the next chapter! _


	3. Chapter 3

_I opened my eyes to complete darkness. A fiery scent filled my nostrils, and I coughed as the scent became more familiar. It smelt like smoke. I jolted fully awake in fear that I would see my room engulfed in flames, but to my surprise I wasn't in my room. I looked down at the stone floor and peeked up at the ceiling. All I saw was more stone and I immediately knew I was underground._

_How did I get here? No, more importantly than that, where am I?_

_I became aware of the scorching heat coming from the dark entrance in front of me. I rose to my shaking feet and stumbled further into the darkness. It was foolish of me, I had to admit. Why would you walk closer to the heat? But something drew me to darkness, and the heat made the blood in my veins boil in anticipation. __I placed my hands on the walls, which was surprisingly cool to the touch, and finally saw the orange-red light at the end of the tunnel. Instead of stepping out fully, I peered out of the entrance and looked down. _

_My eyes widen at what I saw. There was a man, tied to a pole hanging helplessly in the air. He was naked and his face was blood-red. It showed signs of battle and pain. I licked my lips unconsciously and wiped my forehead of the sweat that was pouring down my face. He was surrounded by molten lava and there was only two paths leading two him, the door behind him and a spiral metal staircase that led to the evaluated ground on which I stood. A sinister grin crept on my face at the sight of the man in such a helpless state. I couldn't understand why. I felt this overwhelming desire to see his face scrunched up in extricating pain. I let my gaze wander down his body till I stopped at the stone plate placed underneath his pole. I squinted my eyes and leaned over the edge of the cliff for a better look, engraved on the stone was Sebastian Blood. I felt the anger rise inside me as I read his last name. Why did that name evoke so much emotion in me? I knew a few Sebastian's but no Bloods. As I pondered on the reason to my anger, a new emotion risen in me as I saw the door behind the man open and a few figures stepped out. My heart pounded at the sight of them. The only word I could use to describe these creatures that were obviously not human was demons. They were a deep shade of red with horns protruding out of their heads. Their eyes were a terrible shade of yellow that match their close to rotten but sharp teeth. The sight of these of these creatures lit a quick dose of fear into the man who squirmed and whimpered at the sight of them._

_"Please" He quivered in fear as the demons laughed at him. "I'm sorry. I'm so so sorry…" The tears ran down his cheeks but the demons didn't care. They circled around him as one demon approached him from behind._

_"No, Please don't!" He begged, his eyes bulged out in a craze way as the demon climbed on top of him and positioned itself behind him. I covered my mouth to muffle the gasp that escaped my lips as the demon entered him hard and ruthlessly, causing a bloodcurdling scream to come from the suffering man. Despite the horror of watching the man getting brutally raped, I couldn't stop the feeling of glee inside me. I watched as the rest of the demons had their way with him and smirked with a sinister smile. _

_This isn't enough. _

_He must suffer more._

_ He deserves to suffer more. _

_I rose from my spot and stood proudly, alerting them of my presence. The demons stopped what they were doing and looked at me. A respectable silence followed as they bowed down to me and created a clear path to the broken man as I walked calmly down the stairs. I stopped a few inches from his face. His grayish blue eyes peered up at me, giving me a full view of all the pain he had suffered during his time here. The glazed look in his eyes widen in recognition. The tears pooled over as he closed his eyes and wept._

_"I'm so sorry, for what I did to you…please forgive me. Please…I don't want to be in this place anymore." He begged like a dog before me but my ice-cold heart couldn't forgive what he had done to me. _

_No, I wasn't going to let him off that easily. _

_He had to suffer. _

_He had to feel the pain that he caused me times ten. _

_And I was going to do it personally. _

_I smiled at the demon that brought me a tray of tools. I paused over the butcher knife. No, that would be too quick. Not enough pain. I picked up a knife with a jagged edge. I smirked. _

_Perfect. _

_It would take a few cuts to cut it off completely with this. I faced the man who caused me so much pain. Pain that I still couldn't remember or knew the complete details of. All I knew is he had to pay and with this knife, I will make him do just that. I bent down in front of him. He began to squirm again._

_"W-What are you doing?" He looked down at me when he felt my hands around him. I let the knife hover over it gently, teasing him._

_"This thing…It caused me so much pain…" I smiled up at him. "Why don't we get rid of it?"_

_He turned white as a ghost and stutter uncontrollably._

_"No, No, No…" He struggled frantically as I joined the demons in their innocent laugh._

_"Funny, you sound just like me when I begged for you to stop."_

_"I'm sorry…" He whispered._

_"I know."_

_I let the knife fly down and the blood squirted in my eyes. The scream filled my ears and continued as I began to move the knife back and forth. The scream intensified but nothing stopped my mission. My face was stained red and my pearly white grin was dyed with that beautiful color. The demons cheered me on and with on last swipe, it fell to the ground. I smiled and let out a breath of relief. He was still screaming. I didn't know if it was from pain or horror, but seeing his face twisted up like that filled me with joy. I grabbed the miniature flame thrower and burned the cursed thing. I looked up at the man to see that it had grown back, just like I knew it would. My never-ending game was just beginning. I grabbed the knife ready to start my revenge again. He screamed and cried in agony._

_"Welcome to Hell, Brother Blood." I laughed darkly and brunt the knife down again._

* * *

Rachel woke up with a blood curdling scream, her sheets was soaked in her sweat and her breathing in a frenzy.

"Oh God…" She clenched her head and placed her hand over her pounding heart as she tried to calm her breathing. "That cursed dream again…"

The scream of that man still fresh in Rachel's mind, she felt a shiver run up her spine as the cool night breeze hit her drenched body. She sighed and looked at the alarm clock.

1 am.

So much for a peaceful night.

She collapsed back on her bed and stared at the ceiling.

When will these nightmares end?

What did they mean?

She didn't understand why she was tormented with them. They never failed to appear, every single night.

Knowing full well she wouldn't be able to get any sleep after that horrible dream, Rachel walked to her closet and pulled out her last resort, a green blanket. It was the only thing green that she had in her room. It was odd since the sight of the color green instantly set her mind at ease. But along with that ease usually followed another heart pounding dream. This dream stirred her emotions, and caused a mass amount of confusion. She had no choice this time. At least it will put her to sleep. She brought the blanket with her to bed and snuggled her face against its fuzzy warmth. Her eye lids fluttered close and she drifted off to sleep.

The loud beeping of her alarm woke Rachel up. She groaned in aggravation and hit the annoying device to make it stop. She let out a yawn and rubbed her eyes groggily. She felt like she just went to sleep a few minutes ago, but the alarm clock read 6:30 am revealing that Rachel did indeed sleep for a few hours. She reluctantly got out of bed and into the bathroom to take her shower. While the water was warming up she took glance at herself in the mirror. Her jet black hair that was pulled back into a ponytail was a mess as loose strands spilled over her pale face. She chuckled at the joke Cindy made when she compare her to one of those Japanese ghost when her hair was down over her face. Even Rachel had to admit she could see the resemblance.

Oh well, she thought a she stepped into the shower letting the warm water wash away all the memories of last night nightmare down the drain, you have to learn to laugh at your flaws before anyone else does it for you. After years of being put down by others, Rachel mastered that technique to a T. Her aloof attitude and her ability to shut down her heart when the situation called for it made it easier to deal with those immature bullies. Then again, it may have set them off even more since it made it seem like she didn't care. She truly didn't at first, until the bullies became violent. It annoyed her to no end and she could never understand the concept of hating someone just because you didn't like them.

After stepping out of the shower and running a towel through her damp hair, Rachel grabbed the clothes she set out last night, a dark purple crop top with black skinny jeans and combat boots. She added a silver bangle and a plain silver necklace and completed the look with a matching shade of her favorite purple lipstick. She glanced at her full body mirror satisfied with what she saw. She grabbed her black backpack, raced downstairs to the kitchen, grabbed a spare apple from the countertop and went on her way. She hadn't taken more than two steps out the door when she spotted the bane of her existence, Gary Owens.

He was perched up against a tree, waiting for her, with a big triumphant grin when he saw the immediate frown on her face.

"Hey Rae-Rae."

Rachel narrowed her eyes even further and scrunched up her nose at the sight of her annoying neighbor. It was such a shame really. The average girl might have found his hazel eyes and messy auburn hair extremely attractive along with his dimples that was in full view thanks to Rachel. But Rachel Roth wasn't your average girl. This is exactly why he tormented her so much. In truth, he was actually behaving like a little boy, teasing the girl he so desperately wanted. It was the thrill of the chase and the prize to be won that made his tormenting more and more reasonable. It also pissed him off that she was the only one in his neighborhood who had the guts to stand up to him. Didn't she realize this was his tuft? The gang he runs, the Gladiators, made a great profit in this area and Rachel was jeopardizing that. He knew he would have to deal with her sooner or later but for now, he was just going to have some innocent fun with her. Hopefully, she'll see his way of life wasn't so bad and he wouldn't have to ruin her life like his fellow members begged him to do.

"Jeffery told me what you did for Mr. Green. Bad idea baby, you messed with our deal." Gary tsk at her, a playful grin on his face as he waited for her clever rebuttal that he knew was to follow.

"Well," Rachel adjusted the strap on her bag as she walked past Gary. "If you weren't trying exploit money out of a man illegally, I wouldn't have to interfere in your dealings."

"That's not what I mean Rachel." Gary grabbed Rachel by the wrist and swung her around letting her back hit the tree. A couple of loose leaves floated on her hair which Gary happily plucked away. "I'm saying you made us lose a lot of money not to mention jeopardize some of my men being thrown into the slammer. I'm going to need you to pay for that."

"And how on earth do you suppose I do that?" Rachel piercing hot gaze burned into his hazel eyes.

"Well, there's a couple of way you can do that. You could pay us back the money we could have earned that night, or…" Gary paused as Rachel scoffed in his face and crossed her arms. He caught her by the chin and tilted her head slightly. "You could pay me back with your body."

Rachel raised one of her eyebrows. "You're joking right?" Her lips clenched together in a tight line.

"Oh come on baby, I'll make it worth your while." He whispered seductively in her ear. "I'm sure you heard about my skills in bed."

Rachel cleared her throat and rolled her eyes. "As tantalizing as that deal sounds, I don't have time to pay you back right now. I have to go to a place called school. I know it's a foreign word to you. It's amazing place where you get education and common sense, something you desperately need if you actually think I would ever want to sleep with you."

Gary pouted his lips and placed his hand over his heart, faking injury. "Ouch, you're so cold Rae-Rae."

"I apologize ever so much." Rachel said sarcastically. "Now move." She placed her hand on his chest and pushed him away with a lot more strength than she thought was going to be necessary. Gary wasn't going to let her go that easy. He wrapped his arm around her waist and shoved his free hand into her pants pocket.

"Hey!" Rachel shrieked as she fought against Gary grip. "Let me go!" Gary smirked and pulled out her wallet before pushing her to the ground.

"This," He pulled out Rachel lunch money for the day and tossed her now empty wallet at her feet. "will be your first payment towards your debt."

Rachel glared up at him, her face red with fury.

"What's wrong? Are you going to call your brothers?" Gary teased gently. "Go ahead; just know I'll have a little something for them when they step out." He lifted up his shirt to show the pistol tucked away in his pants.

Rachel gasped. "You wouldn't…"

"Try me…"

Rachel bit her lip in frustration and humiliation. Powerless, she grabbed her book bag and brushed away the dirt from her jeans.

"Asshole…" She muttered as she turned to walk away.

Gary laughed as he began to count the bills. "Oh, and Rachel?"

Rachel turned to the man she hated so much.

"What?" She forced between clenched teeth.

"Don't forget, I always get what I want."

Rachel scoffed again and began her walk to school, unaware of the sinister truth behind his words.

* * *

"FUCKING EVIL BASTARD!" Rachel slammed the door to her locker in frustration. It was bad enough that he robbed her, but to think he actually threaten her brothers with a gun! There were no words to describe how much she hated Gary at that moment. He made her feel so useless, so powerless. She couldn't do anything to stop him. He reminded her of the cruel reality, that she was no hero. Not to herself, let alone anybody else. She couldn't even say anything to protect herself. She cursed the heavens for her weakness as she felt her eyelids begin to water.

NO!

That was last thing she refused to do! Nobody will ever make her cry. She won't grant him that weakness. She was strong. She wasn't a scared little girl. But how she wanted to make him pay and suffer. Her memory shifted back to the dream she had early. A faint smile crept on her lips as she dreamed about replacing the man with Gary Owens and torturing him in a worse way.

"Well, you look like you're having a happy morning."

Rachel gasped as Abby peered at her giggling face.

"What was you daydreaming about to put such a happy expression on your face?"

Rachel blushed as she fumbled with her locker combination.

"N-Nothing."

Abby chuckled gently as she watched her friend fluster about. She was too cute, she couldn't help but tease her.

"So did you ask?"

Rachel froze in the middle of taking out her math book.

"A-Ask what?"

"You know, about the press conference tomorrow. Did you ask your brothers if you could go?"

"Um…" Crap! She was so preoccupied yesterday that she forgot to ask. Rachel felt a wave of guilt wash over her as she watched Abby's peppy expression turned gloomy within seconds.

"You didn't ask, did you?"

"I-I did! I did! And they said…um…yes!" Abby eyes perked up.

"Really?"

"Yes, really!" Rachel face was tight with a smile.

Abby grinned and hugged Rachel tightly. "Yay! I'm so glad! Oh my gosh, we're going to have so much fun! You won't regret it Rachel, I promise!"

"I…can't wait." Rachel hesitated before bringing back her smile.

"I'm going to tell Cindy. I'll see you in home room!" Rachel waved Abby off as she disappeared into the crowd of teenagers. She let out a gusty sigh.

"What did I just do?" She shook her head before closing her locker.

She could already tell tomorrow was going to be a very bad day.

* * *

_Hey everybody! That dream was inspired by one of the reviews in Love Lost. It's titled Blood's Hell and it's for chapter 12 if anybody wants to check it out. I hope that dream wasn't too graphic for most of you. I was just trying to grant some wishes. I will be doing that a lot in this story. Anyway, I wonder if Rachel will meet the new Beast Boy in the next chapter. Who knows? Well, I guess I know, but you'll just have to wait and see! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Until next time guys, byez!_


	4. Chapter 4

The bell rang signaling the end of the day. Abby let out a yawn and stretched. History was always her least favorite subject. Boring stories plus boring teachers equals a boring day in her book. Despite her aching limbs and the faint scent of her morning breath reaching her nostrils, one look at the clock had a smile spreading across her face. She walked over to Cindy's desk and slapped her against the head, ending her ruthless snoring.

Cindy snorted and raised her head groggily. She took a moment to process what just happened before glaring daggers at Cindy.

"What the fu-"

"It's 2:30" Abby cut her off. "Unless you want to be late, I suggest we head to the conference before we miss anything."

Cindy sucked her teeth and bit her cheek as she struggled to decided rather to be piss off or happy that Cindy woke her up from her slumber. Abby didn't give her a chance to decide as she made her way to Rachel's desk. Rachel head was laid flat, her usually tamed jet black locks were sprawled in different directions, covering the desk completely. Abby brushed her own reddish-orange hair out of her face and smiled down at her reluctant friend.

"Come on Rae, I know you're not asleep."

Rachel let out a weak snore that was obviously fake.

"I applaud your efforts, but you was never a good actress, and that was the sorriest excuse for a snore I ever heard."

"Damn it…" Rachel finally lifted her head and her locks fell perfectly back to place. Cindy and Abby envied her hair to no end. How it would always fall into place no matter the weather or state that it is in. If Abby had a nickel for every time she broke a brush trying to tame her thick mane that others would call her "hair", she would be filthy rich.

"Alright I'm up. Let's just get this over with."

"Don't be like that Rae." Cindy joined her two friends and gave Rachel a reassuring pat on the back. "You might actually enjoy it!"

"I seriously doubt that."

Rachel frowned deepen as she watch a group of peppy girls run past the door giggling in excitement about the event. Everybody in Jump City High was going to this conference, and Rachel was not looking forward to a repeat of the school Pep Rally times 10. She could still remember the ear bursting screams, and the smelly jocks who fist pumping cheers gave her nostrils a greeting she would never forget every time they raised their arms. Combined that event with all the other citizens of Jump City along with the presence of a certain super hero team, and Rachel was sure the event was going to be nothing less than Hell.

"Hey stop stalling!" Cindy smacked her hard against the back stopping Rachel's thoughts. "If we don't leave now, we won't be able to see anything!"

Cindy grabbed her purse and raced out the room, shouting for the others to hurry up. Abby chuckled and literally dragged Rachel with her out of the room.

* * *

"This is terrible…"

Of course, being in school had its disadvantage when it came to major events. Hundreds of people were already crowding the small stage where the Titans was predicted to stand. Rachel couldn't help but chuckle at the police who wouldn't show up to stop a robbery, but somehow manage to make appearance here for crowd control. If that wasn't bad enough, Rachel prediction was correct. With everybody leaving from the school at the same time, Rachel found herself standing with her class, a great distance away from the stage. If it wasn't for the mics and giant screen TV's, she was sure they wouldn't have been able to see or hear anything.

"TEEN TITANS RULE!" Another jock next to her screamed and rose his fist into the air causing a deafening roar from anybody who heard the cheer. While Rachel tried to move away from his drenched armpit, she ended up stepping on somebody's foot, and got a harsh shove in response.

"Watch it freak, I just bought these shoes!"

Rachel rolled her eyes at the heavily made up girl. "Than it wasn't a smart idea to wear them to a event hundreds of people was going to. Did you think there was going to be elbow room or something? We're all huddled up together trying to see the same thing, of course your feet going to be stepped on."

The girl glared at Rachel and looked about ready to slap her when Abby shot her a look.

"Don't even think about it."

Cindy nodded in agreement. "It would be in your best interest to walk away now."

The girl paused for a second before sucking her teeth and making her way further into the crowd.

"Are you okay Rae?" Abby asked after making sure the girl was gone.

"I want to go home." Rachel said flatly.

Cindy and Abby exchanged a look before Cindy let out a sigh.

"I know we're asking a lot of you right now Rae, but could you please bear with it a little longer?"

Rachel raised her eyebrow. She knew how much this meant to her friends, but she was positive that girl would come back even more piss off and this time with back up.

"If something like that happens again we leave immediately?" Abby offered.

After a few moments of useless debating, Rachel reluctantly sigh. "Deal…"

Cindy squealed and hugged her. "Thanks Rae, you're the best!"

Rachel rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to respond when a loud roar that swept through the entire crowd drowned her voice and broke her ears. The three friends looked around to see what was happening and soon Cindy and Abby was joining in the screaming while Rachel rolled her eyes for the umpteenth time and frown at the figures who filled the giant TV.

There stood the Titans...Well...three of the Titans. There was the robot, the alien, and the only one Rachel cared about, Nightwing. She would never tell the others, but she actually had a small celebrity crush on the masked boy. Ever since she first set her eyes on the boy wonder's picture she was infatuated. She even caught herself buying one of his posters, which was hanging in her room underneath a more Rachel Roth like poster. She would never admit it to herself either, she hated the idea of being lumped in the same group of ravage fan girls, and she was by far not a fan girl. She just thought he was hot...there's nothing wrong with that.

The Titans smiled and waved to the crowd.

"Oh my god! Nightwing totally just smiled at me!"

"NO! He was smiling at me!"

It took all of Rachel's effort not to roll her eyes at the girls squealing in front of her. Nightwing approached the microphone and tapped it to get everyone to settle down. Of course, his loyal fan base hushed pretty quickly.

"Hello, Citizens of Jump City. I would like personally thank everybody for coming to this conference. We hope we can settle any growing concerns or questions that the citizens may have right here."

"WHERE'S BEAST BOY!?" Cindy's lone voiced rang through the silent crowd causing fellow Beast Boy fan girls to yell in agreement.

Nightwing lifted his hand and the crowd instantly went silent again. "Unfortunately, our leader could not be here right now, but he has heard your concerns and made this event happen to set your minds at ease."

Cindy grumbled in disappointment, but that expression was changed in millisecond at the sound of Nightwing's voice again. "Now, We are aware of the rise in crime in our city lately, and we also aware of our lack of members being the reason for it. We are in desperate need of help, and we admit that. Which is why today, we are also recruiting members. But before we do that, we actually have a new member we like to announce now.

The crowd went crazy in excitement and cheers, all verbally wondering who the mystery person was. Rachel stifled a yawn and looked at her watch.

Can this be over any faster?

Nightwing raised his hand again. "I won't leave you guys in suspense any longer. This new member is a personal friend of mine, and is a truly... _wonderful _person."

Abby gasped. "No...way..."

"I am pleased to announce the newest member to our team, Wonder Girl!"

The crowd screamed with Abby piercing voice being heard the loudest. Ever a feminist and a believer in all things girl power, she especially loved female superheros with Wonder Woman being her absolute favorite. So imagine her excitement when she realized the sister of her idol would actually be living in her very own Jump City. She was already plotting on how she could get into a damsel in distress situation.

"Hey, look over there!" Somebody screamed.

The crowd all turned and pointed to see Wonder Girl, swinging from street light to street light with her lasso. When she reached the stage, she swung from the last light and flipped in the air before sticking her landing. She stood confidently next to Nightwing and flashed the crowd a dazzling smile, her black leotard sparkled in the sunlight mirroring her smile.

Wonder Girl took the mic from Nightwing's hand. "Hello, Jump City!" She cheered enthusiastic.

The crowd responded positively of course.

"I want to thank you, Nightwing, for giving me this opportunity. And to you, citizens of Jump City, I hope you can accept me as the new member of the legendary Teen Titans. We truly want to make this city better and protect you in every way, and despite the drastic circumstances, I am thankful to be apart of this team...again."

"Again?" Rachel asked out loud.

"Yeah, Wonder Girl was apart of the original Teen Titans." Abby said quickly.

Rachel opened her mouth to asked more questions but closed it when she realized Abby's attention was glued to the conference and she was hanging on every word spoken.

"With Wonder Girl's help, we hope to diminish Jump City crime rate and bring it back to it's original stature. Jump City was once a city of peace and protection, and we are determined to make that statement true now and forever more."

Rachel snorted. "Poppycock..."

Cindy giggled lightly. "He forgot to say till death do us part."

Rachel laughed harder. "Oh, So he's marring the city now?" Cindy and Rachel continued to laugh harder, when Abby shot the two of them a death glare.

"Shut up and listen!"

They obeyed.

"We already have Wonder Girl joining our mission, but we are still in need of help. Now is the opportunity for any new heroes, to step up and join our cause."

There was a brief silence in the crowd, as everybody looked around to see if anybody was going to step up. Suddenly, a voice broke the silence.

"Oh, Me! Right here, Roby!" A red flash and gust of wind flowed through the crowd also causing a collective gasp at the sudden movement. Just as quickly as he appeared, Kid Flash, stood on the stage next to Nightwing with the mic in his hand.

"Hey everybody, It's me. The one... The only, Kid Fl-"

"No."

Kid Flash turned to Nightwing wide-eyed. "But I didn't even-"

"The answer is no..."

Kid Flash pouted and stomped his foot. "What? Why!? I can handle my stuff. I'm a good superhero!"

"Wal-...Kid Flash, I'm sorry but no. We have our reasons and -"

"What reasons!? Oh I get it, you don't think I'm strong enough. I can handle any villain, anytime, anyplace!" As soon as that sentence left his mouth a force slammed against Kid Flash and sent him flying into one of the giant TV's projectors. Kid Flash screamed in pain as he was electrocuted and collapsed to the ground. Onlookers screamed in shock while Titans ready themselves for battle despite having the same expression as the crowd. Suddenly, another force hit Starfire which sent her flying to a nearby building. She skidded to a stop in a concealed alley, but the green light from her starbolts could still be seen and her battle cries heard.

It was at this point the hushed crowd began to panic and scream in fear. Everybody began pushing and shoving to get out, some even running on people.

Nightwing looked at lost as to what to do. Before he could get any words out, he too was knocked back by a force followed by Cyborg and Wonder Girl.

"CINDY! ABBY!" Rachel screamed out at the top of her lungs as she lost sight of friends in the panic crowd. She struggled to maintain her footing knowing full well that if she fell, she would surely die under the weight of all the feet trampling on top of her. She maneuvered her body through the crowd and made her way into a nearby dark alley. She would catch her breath here, wait for the crowd to clear out a bit more before finding her friends. That was her plan but, of course, it didn't work. Rachel turned around at the sound of a scream and gasped. She unknowingly ventured into the same alley Starfire was in, and the heated Alien was in a red-hot battle with...nothing?

Starfire was wildly firing starbolts in every direction, the wall, the ground, but Rachel saw no enemy. She was absolutely sure the Alien lost her mind.

"Um..."

Starfire glared at her, her eyes a piercing green, causing Rachel to take a few steps and raise her hands defensively.

"I come in peace!" Rachel wanted to slap herself for saying that, but the angered Alien was terrifying. She thought she would be vaporized any second.

"Citizen, I fear your safety!" Starfire continued to look around the alley wildly. Luckily, she had stopped her crazed assault momentarily. "You must leave now, and find the hiding place!"

"R-Right..." Rachel decided to take slow steps backwards and was just about to turn and sprint when she saw something move behind Starfire.

What in the world?

It was a black figure that pressed flatly against the concrete street. In fact, if anybody was to just glanced at it, it looked a lot like a shadow. Except the shadow was not the shadow of Starfire. It was formless mostly, but it had the shape of a head. When Rachel peered closer at it, She could see two flashing yellow eyes stare back at her. Rachel gasped and staggered backwards, hitting the dumpster.

Starfire turned her attention back to her and stared at her with a look of concern.

"What is wrong, Citizen of Jump City?" Starfire asked innocently unaware of the ever-growing shadow creeping behind her. Rachel watched as the shadow became 3D and literally lifted itself away from the wall where it once was. It now stood like a full-fledged human except it was pitch black and had two yellow eyes. Just when the creature arm turned into a giant hammer, Rachel pieced together what the creature was about to do and found her voice.

"B-Behind you!" Rachel managed to let out and pointed behind Starfire who turned just in time to see what hit her. She took the full impact to the face and sailed to the dumpster where Rachel stood. Rachel dodged Starfire just in time as the dumpster collapsed do to the tremendous impact of Starfire's body. Rachel quickly rushed to Starfire side.

"Hey Come on…" She patted the side of Starfire face. "Wake up!"

Nothing.

She was out cold.

Which left Rachel in a predicament she didn't want to be in. Of all the times she wanted, no needed, the Titans help now was definitely the time! Now, when her wish finally came true and a Titan was indeed here and ready to help, that said Titan was knocked unconscious and rendered completely useless.

Just her luck…

Rachel turned to her enemy who was leering down at her and Starfire. Its arm rose again but this time, instead of a hammer, it turned into a sharp blade. Rachel gulped and thought about her options. The logical option would to leave the alien and run, after all its every man for himself right? But, Rachel inner morale kicked in at the worse time. Once again that inner hero in her was screaming in her head, despite the fact that she was powerless, she felt the need to protect the helpless alien. She knew that she sworn to hate the Titans but, something told her that this alien was different.

She was going to pay for this later.

She just knew it, but for now, Rachel boldly grabbed an iron pipe that was laying next to her. It was rusty and fragile and was sure to break upon any kind of impact. But she grabbed it anyway, swallowed her fears, and stood in front of Starfire, shielding her from the unknown enemy. The creature merely tilted its head, almost in amusement and disbelief. Rachel's grip on the pipe tighten and she tried to steady it, but it was hopeless.

She was terrified.

It was one thing to scare off crooks and robbers, but this thing wasn't human. It was a shape shifting monster. Like she could scare it off with a BB gun or threats alone. She could tell the creature was well aware of her fears. It was evident. Sweat was pouring from her forehead, her hands was shaking causing the pipe to shake as well, and she was trembling all over. Than the creature made its next move.

It smiled.

From the dark blank abyss of his face, a slit of white pointy teeth was fully seen, and it sent an uncontrollable wave of fear through Rachel that had her drop her pipe. She was frozen to her spot as the creature made its way closer and closer to her. The smile was plastered on its face and its sharpen edge was raised high, ready to be swung down. Than suddenly, its blissfully amused face was struck with a look of sudden pain and agony. The creature grabbed its head and roared. It glared at Rachel before slinking back into a shadow and disappearing into the darker area of the alley. Rachel attempted to calm her breathing and wondered what just happened.

Did she do that? Probably not, since she didn't even know what made the creature flee.

Than perhaps, she was save?

By who?

Rachel turned to look at Starfire, who was still unconscious but presumably coming out of it. Rachel turned her head to the opposite direction, the direction where the creature disappeared too.

It was then she saw a pair of green eyes.

A sharp pain went through her head at the sight of that color, green.

Why did it always evoke such emotions?

While Rachel was trying to compose herself the owner of those green eyes stepped forward out of the shadows and leaned down in front of her. Rachel looked up again to see herself face to face with a man. He had blond hair and shining green eyes. His outfit was...surprisingly normal. He looked like a regular civilian.

Did he save her? Rachel smiled up at the man who stared at her in silence.

Why wasn't he speaking? Rachel rose her eyebrow and tilted her head at the man. The man than seemed to realize something as his eyes perked up and wandered behind Rachel. Rachel followed his eyes to see Starfire, who was just now waking up. Starfire let out a groan and grabbed her head.

"What happened?"

"You was knocked unconscious."

Starfire eyes widen in surprise at hearing this. "Citizen of Jump City, Did you defeat the enemy yourself?"

Rachel snorted. "Not exactly, I think he's the one responsible for that." Rachel mentioned to the man who still stood behind her silently.

Starfire immediately sat up and flew to the man, who took a few step back at the sudden close distance. "Friend, You have assisted me and saved my life. I am most grateful to you." Starfire grinned and hugged the man, whose expression showed he was taken aback. Plus it seemed, by the look of his blue face, he was losing some oxygen as well.

"Um..." Rachel started to butt in but she stopped herself. It would be rude to call her alien right? What was her name again? "Starfire?"

Starfire turned her head at the sound of name.

"I'm no doctor but...I'm pretty sure you're are choking him."

"Oh!" Starfire immediately let go of the man. "I apologize new friend. I appear to have been to excited." Starfire looked down innocently as the man tried to catch his stolen breath.

"Oh, Friend, I have a very good idea. If you are powerful enough to save me, than you should join my team. We could use your help!" Starfire flew around the man excitedly.

The man, looked at lost and conflicted and Starfire finally took notice of it.

"What's the matter, Friend?" When the man didn't answer, Starfire knelt and peered at his face. "Does a cat have your tongue? Shall I help you look for it?"

The man, chuckled silently, as did Rachel. The man shook his head no, before pulling out a small notepad from his pocket. He took out a miniature pen and wrote, "I can't speak."

"I see...That is most unfortunate." Starfire frowned. "The sound of speech is glorious to hear. Than my friend, may I ask what is your name?"

"My name is Joseph. Joseph Williams."

"Joesph Williams, I am Starfire and on behalf of the Teen Titans, I would like to formally invite you to join our team." Starfire stood straight and tall and spoke the sentence effortlessly. Her hand was stretched out as she waited for Joesph to either deny or accept her proposal. Joseph stared at the hand for a second before smiling and shaking it.

And that was how Rachel meet the newest member to the Teen Titans.

* * *

_Sorry for the lame cliffhanger and for not updating in a while. So, any idea who this Joseph is? What about these mysterious creatures that attacked the Titans? I bet you guys all thought it was going to be Beast Boy to save the day right? Oh, and in case there was any confusion, Beast Boy hasn't actually announced his new name so that's why the citizens still know him as Beast Boy, for now. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, please review! Till next time, Byezz~_


	5. Chapter 5

The Titans Tower was a source of light for the city in more ways than one. Whenever the city found themselves in deep darkness, the Titans always found a way to bring it back to the light. But time has changed the tower. It was light outs permanently. That warm, loving atmosphere was gone and replaced with strictly business . The man, the one person who single-handedly changed the Titans, was currently sitting in the very tower he helped destroy. He sat in the dark, his eyes focus on one thing and one thing only. It was a scroll. An old dusty fragile scroll blocked Changeling's eyes from seeing the truth, from seeing the darkness that consumed not just him, but everyone around him.

He's bloodshot eyes skimmed the scroll for the hundredth time. He sat in his office reading, waiting for it all to click together. But it was like a scramble jigsaw puzzle with thousands of pieces scattered in different directions. He was relying on one person to bring all those pieces together. And that person should have been here an hour ago. Changeling sighed once again before banging his hand on the desk in frustration.

He didn't know what was taking Oracle so long, but he knew one thing, she better have a damn good reason for being late.

Changeling tried to shake his head of those negative and violent thoughts that plagued his mind. He decided his best bet was to calm himself. As he thought about all the things that calms him down, he couldn't help but laugh at how the number of choices decreased as he got older. After thinking for a few minutes, he thought about taking a stroll. Just when that idea crossed his mind, he immediately tossed it away.

He didn't dare step outside.

He opted out and took the alternative. A stroll around the tower.

Changeling direction varied. Feelings adventurous, he decided to check out the training room. He opened the door to the darkened room and coughed at the musky smell. The door groaned with age and closed with a thud that echoed through the room. Changeling heart pounded. A rush of emotions went through him as he stood in the room. He took a breath and placed his hand on his trusty treadmill. He could see the thick layer of dust that covered it. _Has it really been that long since I last used it?_ He lifted up his hand to see it covered in dust. _Guess so._ He patted his hand on his pants to rid himself of the dust before transferring the remains to his pants.

He took one last glance at his trusty treadmill, now reduce to nothing but a dust collector. He wondered if it even still worked. His fingers twitched in desire, the desire to feel that burning sensation again. He could feel his muscles contracting. His bones, shaking, practically begging for him to mold them into any shape he desired. His wish was their command. But he refused to command them. With that animal instinct returning, a feeling of nostalgia soon followed. He looked around the room and began to see glimpses of the past. He saw Robin, pounding on his training dummy with a victorious smirk on his face when he kicked the dummy's head off. Starfire's secretly watching him from the corner of her eye now. She would then turn back around and start hitting her targets with shocking accuracy. He would be joking with Cyborg, bragging about who could beat who in a battle of stamina. They would start the treadmill and begin to race side by side. He would argue and shout when he lose, saying that Cyborg had an unfair advantage being half robot and all. While they were going back and forth the door would open and a sarcastic voice halted their argument. He would turn at that point to see Ra-

NO!

He grabbed his head in pain as the tears welled in his eyes. In the heat of the moment, Changeling slammed his fist down. His fist connected with the treadmill causing the old thing to collapse into a dusty pile. Changeling coughed and waved his hand in an attempt to clear the air.

"Well, I guess it was a bad idea to come in here." He laughed dryly to himself. He felt a stab of pain in his heart at the sight of the training equipment he spent years on reduced to a discombobulated mess of wires. It was a bittersweet moment. He destroyed a memory that he wanted to keep and yet desperately needed to rid himself of.

With his head still pounding, Changeling walked out the room before anymore memories could arise.

He groaned in annoyance and pain. Whenever his thoughts wandered, she would appear in his mind. He enjoyed seeing her, but it came at a price. The emotional stress would increase along with the pressure of finding her again. It was too much for him, for his brain, to handle. Changeling reached in his pocket and grabbed his new daily medicine, pain killers. He popped two into his mouth and hoped the migraine would cease soon. Changeling decided to get back to his research. He turned on his heel and started to walk towards his office. But then his nose caught a scent. He smirked inwardly as he made his way to the main room.

Perfect timing.

He entered the space to see his guest, fashionably late, waiting for him.

How did she even get in here? Changeling asked himself. She could be sly as a fox when she wanted to be. But now, as Changeling looked at the woman who was oblivious to his presence, it was obvious that she had lost some of her skills.

"You're late." Changeling smirked when Oracle flinched in shock.

Oracle whirled around in her wheelchair before setting her eyes on Changeling and rolling them.

"Hi, Beast Boy. It's good to see you too. I'm fine, thank you and yourself? That's good to hear. Oh, please spare me your gratitude. It's not like it took me months upon months to transcribe these scrolls."

Changeling glared deepen with each word Oracle said during her little rant. A long silence passed through them after she finished.

"...It's Changeling."

Oracle rolled her eyes again and threw her hands up in defeat. "That's all you got from that!?"

Changeling said nothing as he put out his hand and waited. Oracle raised her eyebrow at him in response.

"What?"

"The scrolls?"

It was now Oracle's turn to glare at him. She sucked her teeth and mumbled "You're a dick." while she reached into her bag to pull out a folder.

"Like I haven't been called that before."

"Yeah, and it won't be the last time either."

"Whatever, will you just give it to me?" Changeling snatched the files from her hands and proceeded to flip through them.

Oracle crossed her arms and frowned. She tapped her finger against her arm and waited.

Nothing.

She started to tap louder, but after a few minutes passed without Changeling sparing her a second glance, she realized he wasn't going to say it. In hopes of getting a response, she decided to say it.

"You're welcome!"

Still nothing.

Why did she even bother? Changeling was about ten seconds away from getting slapped in the face. Oracle rubbed her temples in an attempt to calm her nerves. She can't let him get her this emotional. It wasn't good for her heart. She scanned for something to occupy her while Changeling ignored her. It was then that she realized something.

"Hey, where is everybody?"

"Press conference." Changeling said flatly, not even bothering to look up.

"What?"

Changeling sighed in annoyance before closing the folder. "They went to a press conference today."

"What? Why wasn't I informed of this?"

"it's not like you're an official member of the team."

Oracle scoffed. "As much work I do for the team, I should be the leader. I have way better leadership skills than a certain green asshole"

Changeling grabbed his heart in fake pain. "Ow, that really hurt me, you know?"

Oracle opened her mouth to throw another insult but decided against it. They would just go back and forth, non stop.

"What's the conference about?" She asked instead.

Changeling shrugged. "It's not a big deal, just announcing our new member and hopefully finding someone else to-"

"Wait." Oracle lifted up her hand to stop him. "New member? What new member?"

"Someone Nightwing knew in the past. You know, Donna Troy? She's Diana little sister?"

"You got Wonder Girl on the team!?" Oracle eyes widen and her jaw dropped.

"Yeah…" Changeling furrowed his eyebrow in confusion. "So? What's the big deal?"

"What's the big deal? You got Wonder Girl...on _you_r team. Do you not know who she trained under?"

"...Wonder Woman?"

"Exactly! Wonder woman! That girl is a living legend! You have a mini legend on your team!"

Changeling cocked his eyebrow. "So? We technically already have a mini legend on our team."

"Yeah, but…"

"Also, it more like she rejoined the team."

"Oh yeah," Oracle leaned her head back in thought. "I forgot, the original Titans was formed by Dick, Wally, Garth, and her."

"Yep. All four mini legends." Changeling said sarcastically and plopped on the couch next to Oracle's wheelchair . "I seriously don't understand why you give them so much credit. You're a legend too, Barbara...in more ways than one." Changeling opened the folder and started reading again.

Oracle blinked at his statement. "What did you just say?"

Changeling looked up from the folder. "What?"

"Just now...What you just said. You're a legend too, Barbara. That sounded like...a compliment to me." Oracle grinned.

Changeling rolled his eyes and went back to reading. "Don't be stupid."

"You do care!" Oracle continued to tease. She started to poke his cheeks.

"Cut it out."

"No way, this is the first time we goofed around in years! I'm not letting this moment pass. You could turn back into a sourpuss at any moment. Let me enjoy this."

"Whatever." Changeling grumbled.

"Hey, Wait." Oracle stopped her poking. "Should the conference be taking this long?"

Changeling shrugged. "I don't know. I haven't been paying attention to the time. I've been busy."

"Busy...Right." Oracle said sarcastically knowing exactly what he's doing with his time. "Listen Changeling, You know…"

Changeling drowned out the words coming from her mouth. He already knew what she was going to say. She was going to lecture him about spending all his time trying to find her. How it's not healthy or normal. Saying he's obsessed. Telling him it's time to let go. Well, he didn't want to hear it. And he wasn't going to hear it either. Changeling opened his mouth to snap at her, but, the sound of the door banging against the wall stopped him from speaking. Changeling looked to the doorway to see his teammates, bloody and wounded, staggering their way into the tower. Starfire, who appeared uninjured, had Nightwing draped across her shoulder.

"What the hell happened to you guys!?" Oracle asked after Starfire set Nightwing on the couch.

"We was viciously attacked."

"What?" Oracle eyes widen in shock. It's been months since the Titans been ambushed.

"Yeah, They came out of nowhere." Cyborg grumbled, holding his broken mechanical arm. "One minute, we're talking to Kid Flash and the next thing I know I'm soaring through the sky."

"Do you know who it was?"

Wonder girl shook her head but then winced in pain at the sudden movement. She was already halfway to the kitchen to get some ice for her pounding head.

"No, it was so fast. I couldn't see anything. It was just a black blur..."

"Hm..." Oracle raked her mind for an answer but then she noticed something. She turned to Changeling who stood rooted to his spot.

"What's wrong?" Usually, Oracle would be pretty pissed that he didn't respond nor acknowledge her question, but the look on Changeling face suppressed her anger.

His eyebrows pulled together in an angry, intimidating glare. His mouth, a tight line. His eyes were focus hard on something. Oracle followed his gaze to see he was staring intensely at the door.

His nostrils flared and before Oracle could ask him what was wrong a second time, Changeling was running to the door.

"Changeling, wait!" Starfire yelled out.

But it was too late, Changeling flung open the door and pulled Joseph with a harsh tug.

He flung Joseph to the ground and grabbed his foot when he tried to crawl away. He lift his hand, his claws sharp and ready for the killing blow. With seconds to spare, Starfire's foot sent him soaring to the opposite side of the room. Luckily for him, the couch cushioned his fall.

"I will not let you harm my new friend!"

Changeling glared was replaced with a look of confusion.

"But...his scent...I..." He looked more closely at Joseph.

"Changeling, what the hell is your problem?" Wonder Girl frowned at the green man who was still staring questioningly at Joseph.

Changeling eyes widen in shock. "I...I'm sorry...it just...I thought..." Changeling clumsily uttered still confused.

"Starfire brought him here." Nightwing tried clear the confusion. "She thinks he will make a great Titan."

"I see." Changeling rose from the couch and approached Joseph. "Well than, you got a name?"

Joseph advert his gaze and let his eyes wander around the room. An uncomfortable silence filled the room as Changeling became more and more agitated.

"Oh come on." Changeling sucked his teeth in annoyance. "Don't be a little bitch about what just happen, just tell me your name and-"

"He can't talk..."Starfire interrupted.

"What? He can't talk ? How in the hell did you think he would be good for the team?"

Starfire opened her mouth to reply but Changeling interrupted with a parting shot.

"Are you fucking stupid?"

Starfire's eyes glowed green and her fist was clench. Nightwing placed his hand on her shoulder.

"He saved her life. Isn't that enough proof of his powers?"

"Nightwing, He can't speak! That's crucial in a team. It's a liability, a handicap!"

"What are you saying? That people with disabilities can't be beneficial to a team?" Oracle asked, her tone tainted with anger.

"Oracle, I know what you're thinking. But you're different from him. I mean, yeah, you are a cripple, but at least you can-"

"A cripple!? You know what, save it. I know what you think of me. You only see me as a human computer. A tool instead of an ally."

Changeling hesitated for a second. "That's not true..."

Oracle snorted. "Sure it isn't. Well, I don't care what you have to say. I think he should join the team."

"But you don't even know hi-"

"I agree." Wonder Girl cut him off. "If he saved Starfire, he must be pretty powerful."

"Wait a minute guys! Listen to me!"

The others continued to ignore Changeling objections as they came to an agreement.

"Well, there you have it Changeling." Oracle turned to the frustrated Changeling. "Five against one. Looks like you been out voted."

Changeling, groaned in disgust. "Fine. Do what you want." He snatched the folder from it's resting spot and left the room.

"Asshole…"

"Barb," Cyborg placed a gentle hand on her shoulder in a soothing way to calm her. "That's enough."

"Yeah. We have a new team member to welcome. We can't let him see us arguing on the first day." Nightwing said with a teasing smile.

Oracle grumbled and crossed her arm. "Fine...But I swear if I could, I would kick him right in the-"

"Um, well anyway..." Nightwing quickly interrupted and turned his attention back to the silent man. "Welcome to the team um…" Nightwing outstretched hand wavered as he waited for anyone to give some indication to the name of their mysterious ally.

The Joseph smiled silently, and took out his notepad before flipping to an old page.

"My name is Joseph. Joseph Williams."

"Hm…" Cyborg peered at the notepad questionably. "Well, we can't use that as your superhero name. It's totally average."

"It wouldn't make for a good secret identity either," Wonder Girl pointed out.

"Oh, yeah that too."

"OH I KNOW, I KNOW, I KNOW!" Starfire bounced up and down in excitement. When she was sure everybody's attention was on her, she continued. "Friend can not speak right? How about…Dead Silence!?"

That's exactly what followed after Starfire's exclaim.

"Is it weird that I actually kind of like that?" Cyborg admitted with a chuckle.

Wonder Girl shook her head. "Sounds like a title for a horror flick."

"Yeah, it's too intimidating for a fragile guy like him." Oracle said out loud which caused Joseph to frown.

The room was silent as the team tried to come up with something.

Oracle eyes darted across the room as she thought, when her eyes wander back to Joseph's notepad.

"Hey, what is that?" Everybody eyes darted to where Oracle was pointing.

"Um...Barb? We've already establish that he is carrying a notepad." Cyborg said when he saw what Oracle was pointing at.

"Not the notepad you idiot!" She scowled at him. "The doodle on the pad."

The Joseph looked puzzled before a look of realization brighten his face. He flipped the notepad over to see before flipping it back and pointing to the doodle.

"Yes, that."

Jericho smiled as he began to write in an excited frenzy.

The Titans waited anxiously to see what he was writing so excitedly.

"This is a drawing I did while visiting an old town described in the Bible. When I arrived, the sun had already gone down and the moon was in full view. It was so beautiful, I just had to draw it. But, this notepad was all I had at the time. So, I drew a small sketch here."

"You're amazing artist." Oracle said in bewilderment, and the Titans all nodded in agreement. Even though the drawing was small, you could still see the work he put into it. The shading was perfect and he even drew tiny citizens to fill up the small town.

"I would love to visit it one day." Starfire said with a smile. "Especially if it looks that beautiful and...majestic.

"Yeah, what was the name of the town?" Wonder Girl's eyes shined with curiosity.

"Jericho."

"Interesting...I never heard of that name before."

"It's unique." Cyborg pointed out.

"Yeah…"

"THAT'S IT!" Oracle shouted suddenly. "That should be your name! Jericho!"

The Titans turned to the man, who had a thoughtful expression on his face.

Everybody waited anxiously once again as Joseph began to write in his notepad. His expression was blank, giving no indention to what he thought of Oracle's suggestion. Finally, after a few seconds of agonizing silence, he lifted up the notepad for the Titans to see.

"Jericho...I like that."

Everybody grinned after reading his word's.

"Jericho it is than."

* * *

_So tired...So busy... College kinda sucks. But enough about that. Sorry for the long wait. It's midterm week, and I've been super busy. So what did you guys think of this chapter? Do you think Changeling had a reason to attack Jericho or is he just going crazy? I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Hopefully, the next one won't take so long. -_- Anyway, please review! Byez~_


End file.
